"The Basha Kill," says Stenglein "is just gorgeous and it hasn't changed."

But he still mourns Staten Island.

"Overdevelopment just killed Staten Island," says Stenglein.

"That's never going to happen to the Bash," vows Paula Medley, president of the watchdog 600-member Basha Kill Area Association. A rumored nearby Chinese architecture-themed megadevelopment's being watched, she adds.

The Bash is just too fragile, delicious and makes a ton of people happy.

Such as John Mcmanamy of Long Island, found sitting on a tailgate near some wild roses.

He loves the Basha Kill so much he has a house nearby, too.

And he has much praise for the Basha Kill folks who make visits so educational and easy.

"They're the nicest people; they set up two spotting scopes to watch the eagles," says the retired superintendent of a huge New York City public housing project in Queens.

So how did the Bash get to be so stunning?

It's a geological giant sponge sopping up floodwaters and storing them in a huge underground aquifer.

Today it is heaven for stately visitors like the 16 wading great egrets who stayed "most of last summer," recalls John Haas, Basha Kill birder and author of its bird guide.

"You never know what might show up," adds Haas.

That's the charm, says Stenglein. "I was kayaking the main channel and I was startled by a huge snapping turtle that came up right along side of the kayak, looked around and tunneled down into the depths."

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To find out more about the Basha Kill Area Association visit: www.thebashakill.org